Ontario Wraps a Successful 2017 Construction Season With Opening of Joseph Brant Hospital's New Patient Tower

Ontario is marking the end of another busy construction season, celebrating significant progress on many hospital, school, transit, road and bridge projects across the province.

Premier Kathleen Wynne was in Burlington today to celebrate the opening of the Michael Lee-Chin and Family Patient Tower at Joseph Brant Hospital. The 425,000-square-feet, seven-storey tower will provide people in Burlington and surrounding communities with state-of-the-art facilities in a patient and family-focused environment.

The new space adds 172 beds and includes a new emergency department, two new operating rooms, as well as expanded cancer care, an intensive care unit, and recovery and inpatient units. Smart systems technology will make it easier for hospital staff to provide faster triage, shorter ER wait times and care that is more seamless and continuous.

As the province continues making the largest infrastructure investment in Ontario's history, the 2017 construction season delivered substantial progress on more than 190 projects, including the completion of 72 and breaking ground on 71 more.

Other major projects completed or nearing completion this construction season include:

Building, renovating, expanding and opening 51 new and existing schools, including Boyne River Public School in Alliston, which will accommodate 461 students and provide 39 new licensed child care spaces

Modernizing postsecondary education institutions such as the new state-of-the-art Integrated Emergency Services Complex at Northern College in Timmins

Improving and expanding many roads and highways across the province, including significant upgrades to highways 417, 400, 11/17 and 587.

Expanding hospitals, building new schools and improving our roads, bridges and transit systems is part of Ontario's plan to create fairness and opportunity during this period of rapid economic change. The plan includes a higher minimum wage and better working conditions, free tuition for hundreds of thousands of students, easier access to affordable child care, and free prescription drugs for everyone under 25 through the biggest expansion of medicare in a generation.

Quick Facts

Ontario is investing about $371 million in the Joseph Brant Hospital redevelopment project.

70 per cent of beds in the Michael Lee-Chin and Family Patient Tower are single-patient rooms, compared to 15 per cent before redevelopment.

The 2017 Budget committed an additional $9 billion to support hospital construction projects across the province, bringing total planned investment in hospital infrastructure to more than $20 billion over the next 10 years.

Ontario is making the largest investment in public infrastructure in the province's history — more than $190 billion over 13 years. These investments are supporting 125,000 jobs, on average, each year.

Additional Resources

Quotes

“When we build infrastructure, we’re building communities. As we wrap up another successful construction season, record investments in hospitals, roads, bridges, transit and schools are making a real difference in people’s lives. We’re increasing access to the best health care, making it easier for people to get home from work faster to see their loved ones, and helping to give every child the best possible start in life.”

Kathleen Wynne

Premier of Ontario

“We are working hard to build Ontario up by making sound infrastructure investments that will support vibrant communities, create jobs and lay the foundation for a more prosperous province. Our infrastructure needs to be as modern and efficient as possible, to meet the needs of the province and the citizens’ needs of today and tomorrow.”

Bob Chiarelli

Minister of Infrastructure

“After years of planning, I am thrilled to see the opening of this new, state-of-the-art patient tower. Our investment in the redevelopment and renovation of Joseph Brant Hospital will reduce wait times and help us continue to provide high-quality health care close to home for people in Burlington and the surrounding area.”

Dr. Eric Hoskins

Minister of Health and Long-Term Care

“I’d like to take this opportunity to thank the province and specifically Burlington MPP Eleanor McMahon and Ancaster—Dundas—Flamborough—Westdale MPP Ted McMeekin for their ongoing support and commitment to this project. Combined with the support that we have received from the Burlington community we were able to build a new state-of-the-art hospital tower with facilities and services to serve future generations and enhance individual health care in our community and beyond.”

Photo of the new Michael Lee-Chin and Family Patient Tower at Joseph Brant Hospital. The 425,000-square-feet, seven-storey tower will provide people in Burlington and surrounding communities with state-of-the-art facilities in a patient and family-focused environment.

Photo of the new Michael Lee-Chin and Family Patient Tower at Joseph Brant Hospital. The 425,000-square-feet, seven-storey tower will provide people in Burlington and surrounding communities with state-of-the-art facilities in a patient and family-focused environment.